The invention relates to a multiple purpose warhead adapted for use against combatting military personnel and mobile, respectively immobile armored targets. Such a multiple purpose warhead is described in German published patent application No. 2205074. In the known multiple purpose warhead there is only provided one detonating charge within a detonating casing which has a forwardly directed spike-shaped hollow charge cladding, a plurality of projectile-forming layers disposed perpendicular with respect to the longitudinal axis of the detonating charge and warhead, and on the remaining exposed casing there can be provided portions of the detonating charger. For example, spherically shaped splinters can be provided as a splinter layer. In such an arrangement there may occur negative influences at detonation which is at a point in time at which they detract from the penetration capacity and impact precision of the warhead. For example, the spike-forming hollow charge cladding is subject to such negative influences which appear in the form that when forming the spike at detonation no detonation wave guiding is provided. Moreover, these operational flaws causing a disturbance of the hollow charge development cannot be avoided because a uniform firing is not achievable due to the distorted formation of the pressure waves as a result of detonating charge smoke generation. The hot generated detonating smoke and by circulating particles of the splinter layer also prevent an avoidance of an inhibition of the hollow charge spike. As a result, the splinter layer reduces the available space of the detonating charge disposed above the spike-forming hollow charge which causes a further reduction of the penetration capacity of the hollow charge cladding.
Also the impact precision of the projectile-forming layer is negatively influenced because the curvature of the detonating charge casing causes the detonating waves not to impact rotationally-symmetrically with respect to the axis of the layer.
The arrangement of a single detonating charge within the detonating charge casing does not permit to optimally distribute and dose the energy for attaining different layer-specific detonating velocities.